I just finished watching a DVR recording of UCONN's 58-50 loss to Notre Dame. Jimmy Durante was probably before the time of most of my followers, but he was a TV comedian who ended his show each week by saying "Good Night Mrs. Calabash Wherever you are." Somehow, this came to mind as I watched the waning seconds of the Huskies horrific loss to ND and I could almost hear the air going out of their bubble. The loss left the Huskies 7-10 in conference play with one to go, assuring a sub .500season. Although one bracketologist expressed the following "A sweep would be huge for the Irish's NCAA chances, but would it be enough to bounce UConn (17-12, 7-9, 45 RPI) out? After playing Notre Dame, UConn visits South Florida Saturday. UConn, which has played the nation's second-hardest schedule, must win one of those two and then needs at least one, maybe two wins, in the Big East tournament to lock up its bid. The Big East could get anywhere from seven to nine bids depending how the next two weeks play out."
If the Huskies do not make it to the finals of the Big East tournament I think it would be a disgrace to give the Huskies a bid. I will not analyze the loss because you can read my first post of the season ( on e-mail) or "We just don't have the Horses" after the loss to Pitt to understand tonight's performance. Sadly, I must say, I have had Robinson pegged all year despite the feeling of some of my followers that I have been too hard on him.
One very interesting note about the some of the comments from the color men tonight. Although I am not a Bobby Knight fan, I think we could all agree he knows his stuff. His criticism of Calhoun's game coaching was subtle but spoke volumes. Three times in the second half he noted the UCONN had to find a way to get Robinson more shots. He said that he would have brought Robinson to the foul line on offense rather than have him work hard down low to get open. When he referred to using a high low, he meant putting Robinson on the foul line an moving Edwards down low. It was subtle but it was a big knock on Calhoun's inability to make in game adjustments.
"You Heard it Here First"
Steve
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Well I certainly remember Jimmy D, that's D not V. Boy do I wish Jimmy V were still around to coach either the Huskies or Bisons. I didn't hear or see the game(too busy watching Bucknell lose at home to Holy Cross to end our season) but Knight is right. For whatever reason(s) Calhoun is done & should retire BEFORE his legacy is diminished beyond repair. You said that he didn't have the horses this year & that's true but he had enough to win 20 games & that won't happen this year(ie one & done in the Big East tourney)
Yes, sadly Robinson became a dissapearing act. Coach also seems to be scaling back Oriahki in favor of Majok / Okwandu, which I don't get. Steve, what is your view on why certain talented players "dissapear." Landon Donovan, in soccer, does the same thing - he flashes brilliance, but some games you forget he is there b/c he vanishes. What is a player doing wrong that causes them to vanish?
Whoa whoa whoa - in the last 11 years Jimmy C has taken us to 2 National titles and 3 Final Fours (INCLUDING LAST YEAR). Step down? That is heresy.
As for Bobby Knight, Steve you are the guy that said of Stanley "The essential problem is that he is not a good athlete; his eye-hand coordination is poor resulting in poor hands. Many passes he does not catch cleanly or misses and of most important is that he is a poor shooter. He has very little touch and feel and he will never shoot well. In addition, he moves stiffly and has no 1on1 offensive moves.". Now this is the guy you want distributing from the high post? You can't have it both ways, say how terrible the guy is and then say he should be handling the ball in traffic, in a position on the floor he has never played in the biggest game of the year.
No excuses, last night was as bad a loss as I can remember but Jimmy C has taken UCONN from a Mediocre Yankee conference team to by any rational measure one of the top 5 programs in the Nation, period. Now a 17 win season (so far) with the 2nd strongest schedule in the Nation, and while I agree with Steve that good loses are for bad teams, it nonetheless merits mention that the loses include:
3 point loss to Kentucky (#3 in the Nation)
3 point loss @ Georgetown (a top 10 team at the time)
2 point loss to Marquette (surging and a definite Sweet 16 caliber team)
5 point loss @ Syracuse (28-2 #1team in the nation and Huskies were robbed on a phantom timeout...)
2 point loss vs. Louisville (an NCAA Tournament Team) - btw, this game was an absolute war of attrition, it is not a coincidence that Louisville scored 48 in their next game and UCONN scored 50.
All of these games came down to the final possession, we get one of those games and were probably not having this debate... Yet Jimmy C is tarnishing his legacy? It's preposterous and frankly insulting, he was in the Final Four LAST YEAR, after losing his best defensive player (Dyson - arguable his best player period) in February, Scotty Haralson (remember him) was getting meaningful minutes in March for gods sake... THIS WAS 11 MONTHS AGO.
As for this year, we are not dead yet, if we get a win @ South Florida (they will play our tempo, I like our chances), we will be the 10th seed in NY & open vs. Providence (one and done in the Big East? I will take that bet), a win there and we get a shot at a reeling Georgetown (assuming they hold on for the 7 seed) in the second round. We could wake up a week from today @ 20-13 in the Quarter Finals of the BIG EAST Tournament (not the Patriot League last I checked). When this happens as always there will be ample room to jump back on the bandwagon.
Dave, a passionate response from a passionate fan- great stuff. First, let me be absolutely clear. What happens now or in the next few seasons will not tarnish Calhoun's legacy. He belongs in the Hall of Fame and I also feel he has done great things for the program. Dave, I completely agree that he deserves all the credit for the amazing accomplishments at UCONN. Having said that I have always felt, since starting to follow the Huskies closely since 1988, that he has great strengths and some serious flaws as a coach- this is not a new opinion in a bad season. First, he is a great recruiter and relates well to inner city kids. I believe this derives from his own modest up bringing in a very tough area- South Boston. He understands the unequivocal toughness needed to make it. Last years loss of Dyson was one where his strengths shone- no excuses accepted, breaks of the game, let;'s move on. Getting to the Final Four without Dyson was an incredible feat and one could argue that With Dyson Calhoun might have had a third ring. Second nobody teaches team ball, hustle and trapping defenses better than Calhoun. In 22 years, I have never seen a selfish UCONN player. In fact, many of his stars are more prolific scorers in the pro's than they were in college. On the other hand, I do not think he is the smartest horse in the barn and has always taught the half court offense poorly( a chronic Husky problem) and has been a mediocre game coach; he is very slow to make adjustments mid game.
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AS to your comment that I can't have it both ways with Robinson, I may have given the wrong impression. I still fully believe the quote you cited and it has been more evident than ever in the crucial last five games where Robinson has been doing his disappearing act and his liabilities are clear to me. I didn't reference Knight's comments because I necessarily agreed with the specific remedy but because he was pointing out that Calhoun was not even trying adjustments. However, even with Robinson's liabilities, in this game, against this team it would have been better than what was going on. Also, I will respond to the interesting question that Pete raised about players who disappear in the clutch and in doing so further discuss my feelings that Robinson is way over rated.
Pete asked me why certain players like Robinson and Landon Donovan in soccer disappear at crunch time. Pete, it is clearly a matter of deep seated problems with confidence and self- esteem. Give me one hour in my consulting room with either of these guys and I assure you I would get to the problem and if asked could help them both. In addition, this type of athlete has too high a need to please others and a result the thought of disappointing his teammates in the cluthch is terrifying. If you watch Robinson's behavior closely you can see that this is patently true of him. During the pre-game intro's he and he only shakes the hand and chats with each ref, the scorekeeper and time keeper. When an opponent hits the floor he often extends a hand. Yes he is a lovely guy but that does not equate to a big time clutch player. Conversely, athletes who raise their game in the clutch like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods are generally both supremely self confident and more than a bit narcissistic- teammates reactions be damned. This type of athlete loves having the ball or needs to make a putt when all the marbles are on the line. They are able to hyper focus and the basket or hole actually looks larger to them. The Donovan's and Robinsons are scared and unconsciously move away from the action minimizing their chances of having to take a clutch shot. They really do not know they are doing this and might complain their teammates are not looking for them enough.
Dave as for your listing of close losses, I repeat "good losses are for bad teams." Good teams win the close games. Finally, your mental gymnastics might be correct ( you are ingood company with highly regarded bracketologist Joe Lunardi)
but I don't think they will get that far in the Big East tournament. Yes they have a #2 strength of schedule but they have lost most of the games to the tough teams. I just don't feel you can give an NCAA bid to any team that is either 8-10 or 7-11 in conference play- otherwise why bother to play the games. I admire your passion as a fan, on this blog I am a reporter.
David, I have to defend my legacy comment. No question that he is a Hall of Fame coach. He still may be a great coach. But he definately has issues(physical & mental) that are impacting him & I don't want to see him end up tarished like I believe Knight has been during his last few years at Indiana & then going to Tex Tech, although he did improve their program.
Btw how do you get seeded 10th & play the 15th seed. I see them going against Gtown, Lville or ND in 1st round, all of whom they lost to this year.
Finally, why did you knock the Patriot League. I made no comparison between it & the Big East. Although I do fondly remember the 2005 thru 2007 seasons when Bucknell & Holy Cross did the big powers in quite a few times!!
For that matter to the Diamond clan, Go Big Red!!
Okay - First, my references to "the Patriot League" and "the bandwagon" were slightly uncalled for and made out of exasperation over the disparagement of Jim Calhoun.
With regard to Jimmy C, I will concede that he isn’t the greatest game technician of all time but his record is unassailable, he was in the FINAL FOUR 11 MONTHS AGO, this year isn't over yet, and as long as he is healthy & willing, he belongs on the bench @ UCONN. That’s it for me, I will not dignify this question with another word.
As for the Patriot League, I love the NCAA Tournament because it gives the schools that are not in the BCS conferences a chance, the format with the automatic bids is the perfect mixture, if UCONN doesn't win @ USF, make a big run in NY, and doesn't get in to the NCAA's, I won't feel that bad (Steve is right, you need to win games). Either way, I will be rooting hard for the underdogs come round 1 of the NCAA Tournament.
The Big East Tournament format:
Seeds 1 through 4 – get double bye’s to the Quarter Finals
Seeds 5 through 8 – get bye to the 2nd round
Seeds 9 through 16 – play each other in the 1st round (on Tuesday) 9 vs. 16, 10 vs. 15, etc.
So the lowly 9-16 seeds need to win a game to get a shot at the likes of Gtown, Lville or ND (which incidentally, needs a win @ Marquette this weekend to hold on to the 8 seed).
Finally, Steve, can you arrange to sit down with Stanley before 2pm tomorrow? As long as your in the neighborhood, can you see why on earth Dyson keeps throwing the ball to to the other team (My theory is that he has an undisclosed injury and/or is plain tired from all the minutes him & Kemba have logged in the absence of a third guard).
The Husky faithful will show up at the Garden on Tuesday, Kemba is coming home to NYC and the great Jimmy C is on the bench - anything is still possible.
Dave, unfortuneately, I am in Santa Monica so no time to see Robinson. It would take at least 3 months of work with him, a combination of psychotherapy, hypnosis and de-sensitization to help him with this. Any NBA team that chooses him in the first round would be well advised to contact me. By the way, what is everyone's opinion of where Gavin Edwards will go in the draft.
As for Calhoun, again he has done incredible things with this program, but I do not think he is mentally healthy right now. His long standing bout with depression and anger has gotten the better of him and he needs to undergo serious treatment not a few weeks off to get past this. By the way, he looked over medicated to me on Wednesday- did you notice how he sat almost removed from the action as the disaster unfolded on the court.
Dave, on the Dyson question, I think he is just mentally and physically exhausted. When the Huskies are no forcing turnovers and they have to play half court, Dyson is far less effective- dribbles too much and throws a lot of bad passes.
On yet one more note, I hope the NCAA does succumb to financial greed and expand to 96teams. All the exciting games in the Big East the last two weeks would have been rendered meaningless with 96. If they go to 96 games- they shouldn't bother with a season. Just play a conference tournament and the NCAA. The NCAA does not inspire confidence and I fear they will go to 96- who the hell will bother going to regular games.
Steve - Forget Stanley and Dyson - put me down for your next available session.
David, I will leave the entire morning of Tuesday, March 20 open for you. As a fan (who you may have noted had my picture taken with the Husky mascot) I am incredibly disappointed and will have very little interest in March Madness. Good fans should be passionate and forever hopeful; as a Broolyn Dodger fan in the fifties our cry was "wait til next year" until 1955 when my beloved Dodgers won their first World Series.
However, as a reporter, I will explain in my upcoming post why the season ending collapse was really not such a surprise and something I foresaw in December.
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